The present invention relates generally to a transmission for an automotive vehicle, particularly for use with working or industrial vehicles such as fork lift trucks, shovel loaders and the like. More specifically, the present invention relates to a clutch position selector valve means of an automatic power transmission for the industrial vehicle for switching the clutch position between the forward clutch position and the reverse clutch position for driving the vehicle in the forward and reverse direction.
Generally, this type of transmission has an operating lever for switching clutch position between the forward and reverse clutch positions. The operating lever is generally mounted on a steering column having at the top a steering wheel and is generally positioned at the left side of the steering column adjacent the steering wheel, whereby, a human operator can operate the steering wheel by his right hand and operate the operating lever and a control lever for controlling the working equipment mounted on the vehicle such as, for example, a lifter of the fork lift truck or power shovel of the shovel loader, by his left hand. The operating lever is connected to a hydraulic selector valve through a linkage of control shafts, levers and rods. The operating lever selectively connects an inlet port of the valve means with a hydraulic circuit for switching clutch positions of the transmission. On such a transmission, it has been sometimes required to reversibly position the operating lever at right side of the steering column so as to enable the operator to operate the steering wheel by his left hand and operate the operating lever and the control lever by his right hand. In such case, it is necessary to adapt the hydraulic circuit to cause the control shaft to rotate in the opposite direction. However, it is complicated and troublesome to change the arrangement of the hydraulic circuit. Therefore, the conventional transmission for the working vehicle is provided with a plurality of bell-cranks so as to enable it to be rearranged to reverse the rotational direction of the control shaft. Although such conventional transmission can be rearranged to locate the operating lever at the right side of the steering column, it has caused an increased cost for the bell-crank arrangement.